The Daily Digger

From Reuters: A small group of U.S. oil producers has been trying to exploit advances in DNA science to wring more crude from shale rock, as the domestic energy industry keeps pushing relentlessly to cut costs and compete with the world's top exporters.  Shale producers have slashed production costs as much as 50 percent over two years, waging a price war with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).  Now, U.S. shale producers can compete in a $50-per-barrel oil market, and about a dozen shale companies are seeking to cut costs further by analyzing DNA samples extracted from oil wells to identify promising spots to drill. The technique involves testing DNA extracts from microbes found in rock samples and comparing them to DNA extracted from oil. Similarities or differences can pinpoint areas with the biggest potential. The process can help cut the time needed to begin pumping, shaving production costs as much as 10 percent, said Ajay Kshatriya, chie...

Energy in Depth:   Disturbing Video Shows How Out of Touch Fringe Anti-Fracking Activist Group Is With Ohioans   -   "A disturbing anti-fracking video from Appalachia Resist! — perhaps the most rogue fringe activists group in Ohio — was recently posted to social media in an apparent effort to save their failed campaigns. The group, which has been tied to..." Reuters:   All Drill, No Frack: U.S. Shale Leaves Thousands of Wells Unfinished   -    "U.S. shale producers are drilling at the highest rate in 18 months but have left a record number of wells unfinished in the largest oilfield in the country – a sign that output may not rise as swiftly as drilling activity would indicate. Rising U.S. shale output has rattled OPEC's most influential exporter Saudi Arabia and pushed oil prices to a near..." Press release:   Ascent Resources Utica Holdings, LLC Announces Offering Of $1.5 Billion Of Senior Notes   -    "Ascent Resources ...

New permits issued last week :  9   (Previous week:  7 )  +2 Total horizontal permits issued:  2432   (Previous week:  2427 )  +5 Total horizontal wells drilled:  1937   (Previous week:  1931 )  +6 Total horizontal wells producing:  1532   (Previous week:  1530 )  +2 Utica rig count:  20   (Previous week:  21 )   -1 Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter! Follow @EnergyNewsBlog

by Jackie Stewart, Energy in Depth EID has learned that  one school in Guernsey County has seen its funding double, thanks to minerals produced from shale wells . This is a real-world example of the positive impacts discussed in  EID’s recent report.  Ohio communities are just now starting to get a glimpse of what’s to come as ad valorem taxes, or real estate property taxes, paid on oil and natural gas production are starting to pay dividends.  As EID’s report showed, six Ohio counties have collectively received  $43.7 million from this one tax alone , based on production through 2013 . One of these counties was Guernsey County, which is in the oil window of Utica Shale development and was a top oil-producing county every quarter last year. As EID’s report examines, ad valorem tax revenue stays 100 percent local, supporting schools, county governments, townships, villages, mental health centers and first-responders. Through the Freedom of Information Act ...

by Jackie Stewart, Energy in Depth The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) today conducted a competitive online auction of  1,186 acres  of federal minerals in the Wayne National Forest (WNF) that  brought   a total of $5,196,220.07 — more than doubling what the first WNF mineral auction brought in December. The December sale of 719 acres in the WNF  totaled  $1.7 million, meaning the first two sales have brought in over $6.8 million. EID  conservatively forecasted  today’s sale of acreage from the Marietta Unit — which includes the prolific dry natural gas found in Monroe County — could yield more than $2 million. That forecast proved to be conservative, indeed! Considering up to 40,000 total acres have been  approved for leasing in the Wayne  and competitive online auction sales occur quarterly, this is great news for private property owners and especially the schools in Monroe County, as the federal government  sends a portion...

The Ohio Oil and Gas Association strongly urges Senator Rob Portman to support the repeal of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) venting and flaring rule that was approved during the waning days of the Obama Administration.  It is clear this rule, if it should stand, would have a disastrous impact on conventional oil and natural gas operators in southeast Ohio who produce wells in and near federal owned minerals. These longstanding Ohio businesses would be forced to comply with unnecessary rules that could cost up to $50,000 per well by requiring they be retrofitted with emissions control equipment. In addition, the rule would also create significant ongoing costs for the life of the well.  There are currently over 2,000 wells in Ohio that could be targeted by this rule. Many of these existing conventional wells are lower producing wells, owned and operated by local conventional producers who cannot afford to make those capital investments or would be forced to plug...

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has now released the production data from the Utica shale for the fourth quarter of 2016. As always, we are going to give you a look at how the numbers compare to past quarters, past years, and how they break down among the various drillers who are active in Ohio and the counties where they are drilling. We also have the top 10 oil and gas wells detailed below. PRODUCTION RATE COMPARISONS First up, let's take a look at how the quarterly data compares from the 1st quarter of 2014 through the fourth quarter of 2016. As a reminder, all oil figures are 42-gallon barrels, and all gas production is measured in MCF: QUARTER # OF WELLS/# WITH DATA OIL GAS DAYS OIL/DAY OIL/WELL GAS/DAY GAS/WELL 2014-1 476/418 1,950,979 67,333,945 28,019 70 4,667 2,403 161,086 2014-2 562/504 2,467,283 88,673,741 37,922 65 4,895 2,338 175,940 2014-3 717/674 3,013,667 132,017,386 50,858 59 4,471 2,596 195,871 2014-4 828/779 3,558,836 164,815,008 62,527 57 4...

GoErie.com:   Doing Business with the Cracker Plant   -    "A $6 billion petrochemical plant to be built near Pittsburgh over the next five years will produce more than the polyethylene building blocks for the plastics industry here and worldwide. It will also produce jobs, a new market for existing businesses, spinoff businesses and cheaper raw materials in the..." Marcellus Drilling News:   EIA Drilling Report: Gas Prod to Hit Another Record High in April   -    "Yesterday MDN’s favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), issued our favorite monthly report–the Drilling Productivity Report (DPR). The DPR is the EIA’s best guess, based on expert data crunchers, as to how much each of the U.S.’s seven major shale plays will produce for both oil and natural gas in the..." Canton Repository:   Editorial: Gas Industry Gushing Over Encouraging Signs   -    "In the volatile oil and gas in...

New permits issued last week:  7   (Previous week:  13 )  -6 Total horizontal permits issued:  2427   (Previous week:  2422 )  +5 Total horizontal wells drilled:  1931   (Previous week:  1926 )  +5 Total horizontal wells producing:  1530   (Previous week:  1528 )  +2 Utica rig count:  21   (Previous week:  20 )   +1 Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter! Follow @EnergyNewsBlog

From an Ohio Department of Natural Resources news release: During the fourth quarter of 2016, Ohio’s horizontal shale wells produced 3,577,553 barrels of oil and 345,241,753 Mcf (345 billion cubic feet) of natural gas, according to the figures released today by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).     2015 Quarter 4 (Shale) 2016 Quarter 4 (Shale) Percentage Change Barrels of oil 6,380,122 3,577,553 (-43.93%) Mcf of natural gas 302,431,181 345,241,751 14.16% Total production for the last two years, with the percent change in production from 2015 to 2016, can be found below:     2015 Shale 2016 Shale Percentage Change Barrels of oil 23,054,428 17,949,097 (-22.14%) Mcf of natural gas 955,610,695 1,370,220,834 43.39% The ODNR quarterly report lists 1,561 wells, 1,511 of which reported production. Of the 1,511 wells reporting production: The average amount of oil produced was 2,392 barrels. The average amount of gas produced was 228,664 Mcf...

From the Times Reporter : Federal officials have issued their approvals, and construction of the 713-mile Rover Pipeline is set to begin.  That means the steel pipe stacked on the grounds of the Republic Short Line railroad yard will begin disappearing as it's hauled to construction sites.  Rover will have two 42-inch pipelines cutting across the state. The pipe was made in Greece and shipped to Cleveland, where it was hauled to the Massillon site — former locations for Republic Steel and Massillon Stainless facilities. Some of the pipe has been at the site since May 2015. From NGI : A group of around 250 landowners is accusing Rover Pipeline LLC of failing to consult with property owners before felling trees along the pipeline's proposed route, in violation of its FERC certificate.  The landowners, represented by Goldman & Braunstein LLP, filed a motion with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Tuesday to enforce the Natural Gas Act (NGA) certificate ...